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On to West Point!
On to West Point!
A Customized Training Program with Lifeline USA Helps a High School Senior Fulfill His Dream
Chad Plenge knew he had everything he needed to get into West Point Military Academy—except superior strength.
“I was a weak kid,” he says. At six feet and 95 pounds, some high-school classmates even referred to him as “thin twig.”
During his freshman physical fitness test, Plenge completed 2 pull-ups, 58 sit-ups, and ran the mile in just over 7 minutes.
Now a senior at Monroe High School in Monroe, Wisconsin, Plenge began his physical transformation by joining the cross-country team during his sophomore year. To improve his conditioning even further, especially his upper body strength, Plenge went to John Ditter, his physical education instructor, to put together a customized exercise program.
“Mr. Ditter really emphasized using the same muscles in different planes of motion to maximize their strength,” says Plenge. “One piece of equipment that worked really well was the Power Push Up. I’d push up against three rubber cables that went across my back, so I was really exercising against an extra 45 pounds of resistance. The exercise gets harder as you push upward, because the bands resist more.”
Besides pull-ups and push-ups, another West Point test that had Plenge concerned was the basketball throw, which involves throwing a basketball overhand, with one arm, from a sitting/kneeling position. “This requires a strong upper body and core,” says Ditter. To train for this event, Ditter had Plenge throw Lifeline USA medicine balls from various sitting positions.
Plenge purchased his own Power Push Up II and medicine balls from Lifeline USA for about $70 to continue his workouts at home. Over the last two years of cross-country and resistance training he has gained 65 pounds, weighing in now at 160.
On May 13 Plenge was formally accepted to West Point. He passed the Academy’s
physical fitness requirements with outstanding numbers: He ran the mile in 5 minutes and 45 seconds, completed 95 sit-ups in two minutes, 15 pull-ups in two minutes, 62 push-ups in two minutes, the 40-yard shuttle run in 9.2 minutes, and threw the basketball 57 feet.
Plenge will report for six weeks of basic training in July, the beginning of a 12-year adventure—four years at West Point and eight years in the military as a U.S. Army officer.
“I can’t wait to get started,” says Plenge. “I’m not sure where the future will take me, but I know I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for the help of Coach Ditter and the encouragement of my friends and family.”
Fitness Cables
Power Pushup 3
Power Wheel
A Customized Training Program with Lifeline USA Helps a High School Senior Fulfill His Dream
Chad Plenge knew he had everything he needed to get into West Point Military Academy—except superior strength.
“I was a weak kid,” he says. At six feet and 95 pounds, some high-school classmates even referred to him as “thin twig.”
During his freshman physical fitness test, Plenge completed 2 pull-ups, 58 sit-ups, and ran the mile in just over 7 minutes.
Now a senior at Monroe High School in Monroe, Wisconsin, Plenge began his physical transformation by joining the cross-country team during his sophomore year. To improve his conditioning even further, especially his upper body strength, Plenge went to John Ditter, his physical education instructor, to put together a customized exercise program.
“Mr. Ditter really emphasized using the same muscles in different planes of motion to maximize their strength,” says Plenge. “One piece of equipment that worked really well was the Power Push Up. I’d push up against three rubber cables that went across my back, so I was really exercising against an extra 45 pounds of resistance. The exercise gets harder as you push upward, because the bands resist more.”
Besides pull-ups and push-ups, another West Point test that had Plenge concerned was the basketball throw, which involves throwing a basketball overhand, with one arm, from a sitting/kneeling position. “This requires a strong upper body and core,” says Ditter. To train for this event, Ditter had Plenge throw Lifeline USA medicine balls from various sitting positions.
Plenge purchased his own Power Push Up II and medicine balls from Lifeline USA for about $70 to continue his workouts at home. Over the last two years of cross-country and resistance training he has gained 65 pounds, weighing in now at 160.
On May 13 Plenge was formally accepted to West Point. He passed the Academy’s
physical fitness requirements with outstanding numbers: He ran the mile in 5 minutes and 45 seconds, completed 95 sit-ups in two minutes, 15 pull-ups in two minutes, 62 push-ups in two minutes, the 40-yard shuttle run in 9.2 minutes, and threw the basketball 57 feet.
Plenge will report for six weeks of basic training in July, the beginning of a 12-year adventure—four years at West Point and eight years in the military as a U.S. Army officer.
“I can’t wait to get started,” says Plenge. “I’m not sure where the future will take me, but I know I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for the help of Coach Ditter and the encouragement of my friends and family.”
